Welcome to Wish Upon A Fish!
My name is Ethan Hamrick. I’m 19 years old and have a deep passion for fishing and teaching other people to fish.
I have been fishing since I was 3 years old, when my grandparents would take my to local ponds and teach me how to fish. I fish quite a bit in both fresh and saltwater.
I participate in a number of bass fishing tournaments each year throughout Central Florida. I also target several saltwater species on a regular basis, most notably snook, redfish, and spotted seatrout.
My family and I have lived in many different areas throughout the southeastern United States, so I’ve gotten to fish a lot of awesome places. I currently live near the beach on the West coast of Florida, just south of Clearwater.
Since I was 11, I have kept a track of every fish I’ve caught. Over the past eight years, I have caught over 12,000 fish!
Here at Wish Upon A Fish, it’s our goal to use our knowledge to help anglers become better fishermen. We post weekly articles sharing our latest fishing adventures and offering helpful fishing tips on a variety of species.
We thank you for checking out our website and hope you’ll join us as we do our best to help anglers take their fishing to the next level.
My Catch and Release Mission
The idea of catch and release fishing doesn’t sit well with a lot of fishermen. Many anglers don’t see the point of fishing at all if they can’t keep what they caught. However, catch and release fishing is something that all fishermen should support and be a part of. Without it, the future of our great sport is in jeopardy and the coming generations won’t be able to experience catching many of the awesome fish we catch today.
That said, I have no problem with people keeping a few fish legally to eat here and there, especially if they truly need food. I myself like to keep a handful from time to time, depending on the species, as I still love a good fish dinner.
However, I don’t see any point in the majority of anglers keeping their limit of fish every day or keeping big, breeder size fish, even if they are legal or in season. That simply isn’t being a good steward of the resource. Most fishermen don’t truly need it and it just damages our fisheries.
When we release the fish we catch, we’re preserving the resource and giving someone else, or even ourselves a chance to experience the thrill of catching those fish again.
Some anglers assume that the majority of fish that are released will die soon thereafter anyways, so they are better off keeping them. However, this is simply not the case. Catch an release if very effective and helps preserve the fish population.
For example, this past summer, I had the opportunity to catch two different large bull redfish multiple times. I identified them as the same fish because of the spots on their tails.
I landed one of these fish three times. It measured 32 inches and had two dots connected to one another on its tail. I caught the other fish twice. It measured 31 inches and had a very distinct spot on its tail.
I was able to experience a fun battle with both fish multiple times and watch them swim away unharmed each time. Although both of those redfish were out of the slot limit, it still shows that catch and release works and is what keeps our fisheries strong and abundant!
I hope this motivates anglers to become an advocate of catch and release fishing, if they haven’t already. Let’s all work together to help extend the life of the sport we all love and enjoy!
Also, if you enjoy watching people catch fish, head on over to our YouTube Channel or Instagram (below).
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